1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to accessories used in the sport of golf.
2. Related Art
When playing the sport of golf it is often required that, once a player's ball has landed on the green, the ball be removed by the player prior to his or her completing the hole in order to provide another player a free path to the cup (or simply to allow the player to clean the ball prior to putting). To ensure that the player returns the ball to the same spot it occupied on the green prior to being picked up, a so-called ball marker is placed on or in the green to mark the location of the ball. A variety of different types of ball markers have been developed for this use: with arguably the most popular type comprising a flat, disk-like marker that lies on the top surface of the green (and may include a downwardly extending spike to anchor the marker in the green). Such markers are relatively inexpensive to produce and are produced by the thousands each year.
While many players carry such markers, it is remarkable how often such markers cannot be easily located when a player wishes to mark his or her ball. Due to this difficulty, attempts have been made to provide storage locations for such markers to increase the likelihood that a player can locate a marker when he or she requires one. Such attempts include forming a “snap” retention device in golf gloves to allow a marker to be carried on the glove until needed. Other attempts include forming a cavity in a cap (e.g., hat), with the marker being held within the cavity until it is needed by the golfer.
Such attempts, while somewhat effective, require, of course that the golfer be wearing the glove or cap at the time the marker is needed. If the cap or glove was left in the golf cart, the golfer must retrieve it from the cart in order to use the marker. Such attempts have also resulted in many lost markers due to markers falling from the glove or the cap during regular play; thereby becoming unavailable for use when the golfer desires a marker.